Drum Synth Kit/Assembled

Available as a kit or a fully made unit, the Rakit Drum Synth is based on the Boss PC-2/AMDEK PCK-100 percussion synthesizer. The sounds produced by the synth are not limited to what you would expect to associate with drum sounds and can vary from big bass drums to tapping on glass to UFO space drum-wobbly things! Not only does this Drum Synth do sonic justice to the original but we have also put our own spin on it with extra modifications including:
* Attack on/off
* VCO & LFO wave shape selection
* Pitch CV input

are you up to the challenge?

Introducing the newest addition to the Rakit collection – the Rakit Drum Synth. This kit requires skill and precision to complete, but trust us when we say it is well worth the effort!!

Kit Assembly

Only two basic soldering tools are required to complete this kit: a soldering iron and a pair of flush cutters. The detailed assembly guide can be followed online or downloaded to print out at home.

The kit is made entirely of interlocking PCBs and unlike most kits the only wires that have to be soldered are the ones going to the piezo disc.

How it Works

The synth is triggered by a piezo disc which is sensitive to how hard you tap the top panel giving subtle differences in the envelope. The sounds are generated by a VCO optionally modulated by a frequency sweep, LFO, Pitch CV or all three. There is a simple envelope generator with a fixed fast attack for punchy percussive envelopes and variable decay for super short to really long decays (5 seconds+).

Buy it Made

Don’t want to make the kit? No problem! The Drum Synth is also available to buy completely assembled and ready to go.

An example sheet is available to download showing you how to recreate 8 settings from the original Boss PC-2/AMDEK PCK-100 percussion synthesizer and a blank settings sheet for recording your own favourite settings.

2x Trigger options

External Trigger

Use the 3.5mm mono socket to connect to the Rakit Baby8 Sequencer, external drum pads or anything with a gate out.

Applying an external rising edge between 500mV to supply activates the drum.

Touch Pad Trigger

Activate the piezo fixed to the underside of the top panel using a finger or weapon of your choice! We rather like the suggestion from Csaba Nagy to use a pencil with a rubber on the end. ………………………

Powering The Unit

The Drum Synth comes with a 9V pp3 battery to barrel jack connector as standard. We recommend using an alkaline battery, one of which can be added to your order using the drop down menu above.

Should you wish to use your own power supply, please ensure it meets the following specifications:

+8V to +12V, Centre positive 2.1mm (centre) x 5.5mm (outside)

VCO/lfo shape

Select triangle or square wave.

Attack

Mimics the sound of a drumstick hitting a skin. The degree to which it is noticeable is dependent on the other settings.

sens

Sets the sensitivity of the trigger/piezo input.

Rate

Controls the frequency of the LFO. Approx 2Hz to 400Hz

pitch

Controls the pitch (frequency) of the VCO. Approx 30Hz to 3.5kHz

depth

Controls the amount of LFO applied to the VCO.

decay

Sets the decay time from short and punchy (50ms) to lingering (5 seconds+)

sweep

Controls the amount of frequency sweep applied to the VCO.

Select the direction of the frequency sweep.

detailed assembly guide

The step by step assembly guide can be followed online or downloaded to print out at home and contains large photos, handy hints and tips to help you along the way!

9 reviews for Drum Synth Kit/Assembled

Fantastic. Really clear instructions and if you have any questions they’re super helpful via email.

I modified the kit to house it in an enclosure using panel mount pots and switches. I also added a push button which acts as a second trigger as well as the piezo.

Rated 5 out of 5

snk (verified owner)–7th October 2017

Great DIY project : the Rakit crew is very helpful, the assembly guide very well done, and the enclosure looks good.
Once built, it is compact, but in a good way (you don’t need dwarf fingers to tweak the knobs).
Also, having cg/gate input is a great bonus !

Rated 5 out of 5

RAiS (verified owner)–30th October 2017

super funny toy with easy interface… i try to trigger the rakit with a simple sequencer app on my phone it works perfectly!!

Rated 5 out of 5

Steve Levine (verified owner)–1st November 2017

The build quality is really superb
Sonically it punches well above it’s weight
I’ve got lots to compare with and it really shines in fact I’ve already used it on a track and it’s added an extra dimension to the song
Superb

Rated 4 out of 5

OutaSpaceMan (verified owner)–26th November 2017

Pleasantly surprised by this kit.
Straightforward build.
Sits very nicely into my current set up where it can function as an extra synth voice if necessary..👍
I intend buying at least 2 more and build a dedicated set of pads so I can stand in front of the mirror and pretend I’m Karl Bartos.👍👍
OSM.

Rated 5 out of 5

JD (verified owner)–5th December 2017

Excellent unit with a huge range of sounds, and great fun especially when hooked up to the 8-step sequencer.

Rated 5 out of 5

Max Sinclair –14th February 2018

I bought this great little box as a present for one of my mates. We’re both into synths & audio stuff and he loved it! Had a little play myself and it certainly has a wide palette of sounds.
The wide frequency range of the main oscillator allows a good focus for lots of percussive sounds. Can’t wait to try hooking up CV & Gate, potential spooky monosynth! So good to see a resurgence of these little analogue boxes in the game again.

Rated 5 out of 5

Maria (verified owner)–28th February 2018

It’s my 3rd product from rakit and I’m so happy!
Easy to build with all online instructions. Sounds great!!
The team are always very kind and helpful.

Rated 5 out of 5

colinpotter (verified owner)–16th April 2018

I bought the assembled version & it arrived very quickly. A nice piece of euipment – thanks!

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